Weak
by Mandarins
Summary: Even when she was pulling ahead, they dragged her behind. Sakura would always be weak in their eyes. It was about time she fixed that. four-shot / Non-massacre
1. Chapter 1

Summary: Even when she was pulling ahead, they pulled her back behind. She would always be weak. Two-shot / Non-massacre

Disclaimer: Do not own Naruto, ofc. :)

Please enjoy my random thoughts.

* * *

Sakura sat exhausted, drained of chakra from a four hour surgery that hit close to the heart. At three twenty-one in the morning, ANBU Uchiha Sasuke was carried in by his blonde best friend with a gash across his stomach and an arm that could only be described as attached by a single tendon holding it together.

A similarly injured, but not as fatal, Naruto was bellowing behind, fearing for the well-being of his best friend. Thankfully, a concerned Kakashi was able to hold-back the raging ninja.

A sleeping Sakura was tucked-in her bed that night, left behind on a mission they silently refused to have her on. She would be lying if she was not a little upset that they requested that the mission be altered for only a three-man-cell, but these were the same men who always insisted on moving ahead without looking behind.

Naruto left for two years with Jiriya and Sasuke with Kakashi, they would always be the strongest ninja in Konoha. Sakura was simply the girl that was lucky enough to be chosen on their Genin team. Naruto would always be like a best friend to her, but this inner-feeling of being left behind would never be something Sakura would share with him. It was not her place.

And so began her training with Tsunade-sama, the slug princess who was named Hokage after Namikaze Minato. When her two teammates returned, powerful, but Genin, she was already a Chūnin and ready to show the two her worth.

But they still held her behind.

Now, Team Seven were all members of ANBU, but it was rare to see all of them reunited and on the same team. They always had weak excuses, but that was exactly how they still viewed her, _weak._

It was only when she first joined ANBU Captain Itachi's team on a mission that she realized that she never really needed the approval of others to be considered strong. She was finally in a place where she could accept her power-levels and love herself for her.

Or at least she was working towards it.

Her team of newly trained medic-nins could in no way handle the high-level of Sasuke's injuries and came clamoring to Sakura in the middle of the night. Sakura's groggy attitude that usually came coupled with being woken up in the early morning was replaced by a sudden determination and adrenaline.

Her ebony-haired teammate was stabilized and laid across the hospital bed, unconscious and undoubtedly spending several nights in her second-home. They were only an hour into the vital first twenty-four hours and Sakura felt a large migraine incoming.

At around nine in the morning, Shizune tiptoed her way into the room, sensing Sakura's irritability levels and hoping not to spike it any higher as the pink-haired woman sat on the chair across from Sasuke. Spending two hours sitting in the hospital without any reprieve from the same room, Sakura was almost driven fully insane, her medical texts being her only sense of reprieve.

"I brought burritos." Shizune offered sheepishly.

"Thanks." Sakura looked up from her book, Shizune noting it was rather large and she seemed to already be halfway through.

"You should've heard Kenji talk about you in the break-room." Shizune teased, "'Haruno-senpai was able to piece that Uchiha's ribs bone by bone, without breaking a sweat.' I love her so much." She clasped her hands together and imitated his swooning.

"He's over-exaggerating."

"You know that's not true." Shizune countered.

Instead of giving into the older woman's teasing, Sakura suddenly tensed and was staring at Sasuke's prone form. It was then that both women noticed.

His breathe hitched.

In an instant, Sakura was barking out orders and Shizune was following the doctor to the room designated for surgery. How this had escaped her tests and constant scrutiny, Sakura could not wonder. However, the problem was present now and had to be eliminated immediately.

Another three hours of ripping him open, undoing a lot of her previous work, and finding the obstructing piece had Sakura beyond drained. What she was experiencing this morning was nothing compared to the lethargy and true fatigue she was enduring now.

The obstructing item was designed to expand overtime, so there was literally no way for her detect it in his system without tearing open his stomach and looking for something she had know idea to look for.

Sasuke getting rushed back into intensive care did not go ignored by the ongoing gossip that circulated the hospital, and this news reached the ears of a certain Uchiha Itachi quicker than possible.

The moment Sasuke was back into the recovery unit, the Uchiha heir was looming over the occupant with the rest of his immediate family with him.

Sakura's interactions with Itachi and his family can mostly be categorized as professional. Mikoto was the politest of the bunch, proving one's manners were not reflective on the parents. The Uchiha matriarch was kind and almost always offered Sakura dinner whenever training ran longer than usual. Fugaku was indifferent to her, offering greetings only when considered necessary.

Itachi could be both ends of the spectrum, in a single day. Over the course of their last mission together, an over-exuberant missing-nin threw a plethora of knives that would be easy to dodge if it weren't for their pretentious charge that refused to be carried. The one they were trying to escort was worse than dead-weight and ran into the wide open for anyone to attack. With no other choice, Sakura jumped in front of their charge and then quickly relieved the missing-nin of his life.

It was then that Sakura knew that Itachi _cared._ Once the mission was safely over and the team was retiring in the safety of a hotel within Fire Country's borders, Itachi knocked on the door to her joint-room.

Upon opening the door, he did not waste a beat, "You were irresponsible."

"Excuse me?" Sakura had to stop herself from slamming it back closed.

"You let yourself be injured." Itachi continued, "As the team's designated medic-nin you are supposed to stay behind and heal our injuries if necessary."

"I did what was necessary to protect the man we were escorting."

"That is not your job."

"If someone is in danger then it is my job to step in."

"If this is doing your job," He motioned to the newly health gash on her stomach, eyes dilating with slight anger, "then it is severely flawed."

The statement and his entire reaction caught Sakura offguard. It was a simply injury, one that would not take much to heal and the both of them knew that. He was taking this entirely out of proportion, and that was when Sakura fully realized what was happening. A small reaction for Itachi, the Uchiha prodigy who was known for repressed emotions, was equivalent to another much larger one. "I-"

"Do not challenge my authority." Itachi warned, interrupting the pink-haired girl before she could continue, "If I have to request a different medic, I will not hesitate to do so."

This Pyrrhic victory was not entirely worth it, in Sakura's later musing. Sure he had admitted to caring and having feelings with some emotion, but he had completely disregarded her skill-level and had the looming warning that he would no longer request her. This was the last time the two interacted and Itachi had the exact same visage to the one that he had while reprimanding her.

"Are you proud of yourself, as a kunoichi?" Fugaku asked from his place, seated across from Sasuke in a common hospital chair. Sakura and Shizune stood, chins held high are ready to be scrutinized under the eyes of each Uchiha in the room. Mikoto glanced at the two briefly before avoiding her gave to sate at her unconscious son. Itachi held a stare with Sakura before he turned to gaze out the window.

"Is that the way you speak to the woman who saved your son?" Shizune boldly asked, to break the enduring silence.

"I am not addressing you." Fugaku never faltered in his gaze on Sakura. The girl in question knew without a show of a doubt that the man was exacting judgement simply based off her appearance. And by her unusually colored hair and childlike height, Sakura knew he was already underestimating her. "However, if this is what you call healing, then this hospital must be lacking acceptable medic-nins."

Sakura attempted to handle the situation, "I am sorry for my error, however you can see that I have—"

"Please do not continue, Sakura-san." Fugaku waved away her words and stood up, perking everyone's attention, "It had come to my attention that you are the kunoichi that leads this hospital. Placing Sasuke under your jurisdiction for surgery seemed like the most advantageous because of his injured state. However, you have failed."

Shizune sucked in a heavy breathe and raised a finger, ready to intervene. But the look Itachi was shooting both medic-nins stopped them entirely. Itachi was the first person not to take Sakura's skill level for granted, inviting her on mission with his ANBU team, the most prominent team in the entire village. And yet, his disappointed face was enough to wipe away Sakura's confidence.

"It seems as though the apprentice to the acclaimed Hokage needs to be retrained." Fugaku paused, ready to keep reprimanding. However, it was then that Sakura intervened.

"I am sorry for being inadequate for your family." Sakura stated calmly, bowing in apology and then walking over to grab Sasuke's file off the counter and hand it over to Shizune. "Sasuke will no longer be under my care."

Glossy eyes and sniffling away, Sakura rubbed her nose before exiting the room. Shizune was gaping at her friend, known for her punches and muscles. It was then that the woman realized the file was now in _her_ hands, leading to _her_ being under the wrath of a certain Uchiha.

"If you think I'm taking this after _that_ display," Shizune emphasized, "You thought wrong." Promptly walking out of the room with the folder, she handed it to a woman she knew was a Sasuke-fangirl, and yes, she was one of the medic-nins in training under Sakura.

Fuck the Uchiha's, Sakura thought as she wiped away her silent tears.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N:** Hello cookies! I decided to expand this to a threeshot, since this chapter is already 2x larger than the first one! And I did not expect this much support after only twodays (4/28/16) So enjoy this chapter. :) hopefully im done editing it by next week

I'm sorry, but due to AP Exams dont expect another chapter for about a week ;-;-;-;-;-; sososososoo sorry

 **Xxxxxxxxxxxx**

It was unfair of Sakura to group her anger at Fugaku to the rest of her teammates. But _still. I_ f they had only included her on that mission, then what could have happened? There were an infinite number of possibilities. Would Sasuke have appeared barely alive and bleeding at three in the morning? Or would she have healed him during the mission? Would he favorite boys come back home with her unscathed? These were all questions that Sakura knew she would never get answers to. Not because she did not want to, but for an entirely truthful, yet heartbreaking reason:

Because they would never let her.

Sakura was laid across her bed, moping the day away and taking one of the many vacation days that were stacking up. The television that she barely used sat ignored in the corner, Sakura opting for a lazy concentration on the ceiling above her. Ino undoubtedly heard the rumors from yesterday, gossip running faster than the Fourth Hokage. Sakura knew she'd have to address the situation sooner or later, to straight out the real facts from the older one's over-exaggeration, but her bed posed a better argument and she stayed comfortably in bed. Getting her much needed ten hours of sleep, Sakura awoke to her best friend banging on the door.

"Open up, forehead!" She yelled through the walls. Not wanting more complaints from her neighbors, Sakura crawled out of bed and slammed the door open.

The blonde bounced in, laughing at her miserable state. "I wonder why you looks so miserable."

"I guess you heard about what happened."

"Yeah, Tsunade-sama really tore him a new one, huh?" Ino stated through her small giggles. "Damn you two can be scary."

Wait. Rewind.

"What are you talking about?" Sakura asked, fully confused.

"How long have you been asleep?"

"I handed Shizune over to Sasuke and went home."

"You don't even know half the story yet and you're the center of it all!" Ino exclaimed at the irony.

"Seriously, what?" Sakura had enough of the beating-around-the-bush.

"Once Tsunade-sama got wind of Fugaku yelling at you, unearned and senselessly-based mind you, she basically summoned him to her office to get his ass tore apart." Ino described, "She kept praising you, how you were the most qualified and it was not his place to judge your skills. How the object inside him was expanding, whatever." She waved her hand off.

"Really?" Sakura was stunned, only wondering what that conversation would have been like. That was the one thing she had yet to inherit from her mentor, her supreme backbone.

"You should've seen his face. I thought he was going to cry." Ino teased. "Shizune tells this story better. Anyway, let's go get some celebratory breakfast on behalf of your amazing medical skills."

Sakura was in disbelief over this news, unable to fully accept the fact that the great Fugaku got a stern chastising. The morning was already proving to be the exact opposite of the previous day. The sun hung-high while the chaos of the day before was missing from the clear sky. The two were able to converse about their week over a bowl of udon outside, enjoying the warm weather in the dining-area.

"So how is the Sasuke front?" Ino asked with an eyebrow raised.

"You know how that is," Sakura waved her chopsticks around in the air, as if it helped her gather her thoughts, "We're just friends, nothing more. He's the type of person that you hope for, but not expect."

"I was talking about his condition," Ino winked, "But now I see where your head is really at."

"Shut up." Sakura had a sheepish blush, unbelieving of her slip.

"You know I'm joking, forehead." Ino laughed at her best friend's tomato face, "We all know who you're in denial over."

"Don't even start with that, Ino."

"Come on, I'd jump that weasel if I had a chance. He's not a knight-in-shining armor, but he's that dark, mysterious type that everyone secretly wants. I certainly would not mind if he dragged me back into his secret lair."

"Ino…"

"Yeah?"

"I worry about you." Sakura rubbed her friend's shoulder jokingly as she changed the topic, "So how are you and Sai?"

"He can be such an ass sometimes." Ino whined, putting her elbows on the table.

"Yeah, but you asked him to escort you to the Christmas ball." Sakura noted.

"I didn't expect him to be so rude."

"Are you joking? Sai, not being rude?" Sakura asked jokingly.

"Maybe I should just move on, there are other ninjas in the village." Ino joked back, glancing around their surroundings. In the not-too-far distance, their mutual blonde friend was walking in the direction of the Hokage tower.

Sakura voiced their common thought, "What is Naruto doing up this early?"

The moment the words left her mouth, Naruto tensed and stopped completely in his pace. Sakura, thinking there was no way he heard her, continued to stare at the back of her teammate. However, after a good ten seconds, _yes she counted,_ his head snapped around in her direction and it was too late for the pink-haired medic to hide her face.

He immediately started walking in _their_ direction.

"What the hell was that?" Ino asked, "And why is he coming this way?"

"I don't know." Sakura hid in her seat, slouching down and holding up the menu to cover her face.

Within seconds, the menu was being slapped down back onto the table. "Sakura-chan! Where were you yesterday?"

"Home." She answered with a confused face.

"I heard about teme's dad! I'll make him pay for that, I swear!" Naruto exclaimed, unaware of the staring pairs of eyes from the wandering crowd around them.

"I don't need you to do that." Sakura stated, calmly trying to withhold what she was really thinking.

Naruto raised a brow in derision, like she was insulting his sworn-duty. "But I have to protect you!" Sakura was feeling her inner-resolve crack, as if this was latent conversation that had been building-up for the past decade.

"No, you do not." Sakura looked up from the table to the teal eyes of her adoptive brother.

"You need someone to protect your honor, Sakura-chan." Naruto replied.

"Why do you insist on this?" Her voice was slowly raising.

Naruto looked beyond offended, his eyebrow raising up to his hairline at the question. "You always have to have someone for you."

Sakura, having dealt with this on a daily basis, could see his line of thought and his true, genuine care for her. But she had enough. In a short amount of time, three different mean had insulted her abilities and it took all of her restraint from using a chakra-filled fist to remove their abilities to have children. Any other day of the week, Sakura would be their doormat and simply allow their disrespectful words to flow, she would affirm her own worth since when it got down to it, all that mattered was her own confidence.

But today, for the first time in a while, it was not that day.

Ino saw this inner decision immediately and cleared the table of any projectiles that Sakura may choose to use as a weapon. Sure, she was proud of her best friend for finally defending herself, but she did not feel like patching-up her favorite restaurant in the city at eight in the morning.

"It's always been like this. And for once, I can say that I was actually able to do something, to be useful. But I guess it doesn't really matter, huh? Since you'll always be there to protect me and push me behind you."

Naruto, for once, was speechless. It was only when Ino took in a short gasp of air that he sputtered out his uestion, "Where is this coming from?"

Sakura pushed her chair out and stood-up to be almost eye-level to her friend.

"Maybe from the mission you guys did not let me on. Maybe it was when both of you left. Or maybe, it was when we first became a team." She threw money on the table, _Ino commenting she dropped the mic!,_ and walked away.

Naruto sat in her empty spot, staring with wide eyes in the far-distance. Wondering how and why this was brought on. Sakura was closest thing he ever had to a sister, so it was his duty to be there for her. Kushina hated whenever he took a mission on her behalf, but Naruto would gladly take on every S-rank available if it meant keeping his mother away from harm. Having Sakura in ANBU, it meant that her high-profile missions were filled with shinobi who fought with the intent to kill, and it hurt his heart whenever she left the village for such an occasion. So he would have to resort to protecting her by keeping her in the village.

And once that thought processed in Naruto's mind, he knew where he fucked up.

Sakura could single-handedly crush the entire Hokage tower and still have enough chakra to punt him across the village. She did not need anyone, including a clueless future Hokage, to protect her.

Imagine if Minato took on missions to cover for his own well-being.

That alone made Naruto surge with anger and hurt. His blood would boil with rage if his father would take on a mission in his behalf, like he thought his own son was too inadequate for the assignment. But his heart, it would ache since his father did not trust him and his skill. It was his duty as a ninja to protect his village and the loved ones inside, otherwise what would be the point of all this training?

And this was exactly how Sakura felt every single time Team Seven left her behind.

Naruto brought both his hands to push back his hair in obvious stress, causing Ino to chuckle at his misfortune.

"Something funny?" Naruto asked.

"It's just weird how it took _this_ long for you to notice." Ino replied before getting-up.

"I'm an idiot." Naruto stated, causing Ino to put a hand on his shoulder and nod in agreement.

* * *

The constant beeping of Sasuke's heartbeat was a comfort to Sakura, who was in his room purely for visiting purposes. She glanced at his prone figure before grabbing his file, seeing who was now in charge.

 _Nurse Yoshizawa Yukiko_

Sakura almost laughed out-loud, if it was not for her sudden dampened mode, and settled for a slight smirk. It was not a surprise that Shizune would pass the case along, not wanting to deal with Fugaku's antics. However, _this_ must have been such an annoyance to the Uchiha patriarch and Sakura could only imagine the look on his face when his son's care was passed from a doctor to a training nurse.

Just to be safe, since Yukiko was still a medic-nin in training, Sakura summoned chakra to Sasuke's temple and probed the rest of his body. Sure his father was an ass, but it was not fair to possibly neglect her teammate's treatment. A couple minutes later, Sakura was able to dictate that Sasuke was unconscious, but fully healed.

"I thought he was no longer under your jurisdiction?" A familiar voice asked from behind her.

"I was just visiting. He's one of my close friends, it's my own moral obligation to make sure he's okay." Sakura replied, not turning around to face the intruding perpetrator.

"My father would like to speak to you."

"And I do not." Sakura did not skip a beat, brushing one final hair away from Sasuke's face and turning around to face the dark eyes of Uchiha Itachi.

"Please."

"Why should I?" Sakura impatiently asked, moving around the hospital bed to gather her bag on the distant chair. She was on a roll today. There was no bowing down to anyone else's will today, not from this pink-haired kunoichi. She could admit, it was not often that Itachi asked with the proper manners, near begging with his last reply. However, her recent crush on Itachi could be mollified since he was beginning to be reflective of his emotionally incompetent father.

"He wishes to apologize." Itachi candidly answered. Sakura was surprised, this must be a new feat, since admitting one was wrong did not seem like an Uchiha thing to do.

"Why? Because the Hokage all but made it law?" Sakura joked, but Itachi knew that this was nothing more than her regular defensive mechanism.

As socially inept Itachi would concede that picking up on Sakura's daily mannerisms was not hard with her presence constantly intruding on several missions. She smiled through pain, whether physical or emotional. He witnessed her withhold anger through a deceptive grin as she flirted with their target on a mission. But yesterday, nothing could prepare her for that emotional turmoil.

And for once, Itachi observed her quivering bottom lip as she stayed silent against his father's admonishment. He could not explain that strange feeling of _something_ shudder in his stomach as the look of pure anguish slapped across Sakura's face.

Now, that same face was coupled with absolute terror. And Itachi could not understand why it was directed at him.

"Sakura-"

Sakura interrupted, already holding the door open with one hand in an effort to escape, "No, you listen to me. It's taken me a while, but I think I understand. In the past two weeks, I was threatened by both you and your father from my responsibilities 'due to my inadequate skills.'" Itachi raised a hand to interject, but Sakura was having done with his excuses.

She continued, "During both times, I acted to the best of my ability, which to both of your standards, is not enough. Then simply, I'll make it easy. You won't have to worry about my lack of skill since we will no longer be joined on missions, nor will I take cases for the Uchiha Clan."

Itachi remained quiet, unsure what words he could use to amend the situation.

There were none that he could find.

"Please convey this to your father. Have a good-day, Uchiha-san."


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N:** Hello my babies. Sorry this is so late, im writing this on my phone right now at the airport! I'm sorry if there are errors, but writing this on the Notes APP isn't exactly great.

LOL so I extended this to a four-shot, I know, fucking kill me. This is more than the first two chapters combined LMAO so l decided to separate things again. Again, so sorry.

 **Xxxx Xxxx Xxxx**

 _If that idiot thinks he can get away with it, I'll take his whole damn police force away!_ Sakura was recalling Tsunade's angry words about Fugaku. _I wonder how it'll feel to be stuck in the village for months on end, that bastard!_ After calming down her teacher, messily and albeit with sake, Sakura retreated back to the hospital to check on Sasuke's condition.

"You're an idiot." He greeted her, the moment she walked through the door.

"I see you're finally up, sunshine." Sakura retorted, crossing her arms and pairing it with a scowl on her face. "What am I an idiot for now?"

"That you yelled at my father while I was unconscious."

"Sorry, but he deserved it."

"I know. But I wished I had a front row seat." This caught Sakura off-guard and she smiled at her teammate. Finally nearing his bed, she checked his chart again if there was anything that had changed in the last few hours.

"At this rate, you'll leave in a couple days and be as free as a butterfly." She commented, putting the chart back. Sasuke moved over to give her some room and she sat alongside him.

"Please do not compare me to a butterfly."

"I am sure you would be majestic."

Sasuke hesitated, looking out the window and then back to his friend, "So how long are you going to be made at your boyfriend?"

"Shut up, now you're the idiot." Sakura playfully punched his shoulder.

"You're a medic punching someone in a hospital bed and somehow I'm the dumbest person in the room?" Sakura took a deep breathe, not wanting to undue all the hard work that went into Sasuke's now healthy condition. So help her, she'll end up punting him across the village.

Sakura took one more deep breath and then stood up to face the window, gazing at the expanse that is Konoha. "Sasuke, I love you. But if you don't shut up about this I'll kill you right now. No witnesses."

He smirked at the predictable response, "As if you could take me, even while I'm injured."

Sakura stilled, humorous nature gone, and threw-back, "Maybe if you took me on the mission you wouldn't be injured."

"And you would be in the hospital bed?" Sasuke asked back, sitting up and getting ready for what he knew to be an argument.

"Damnit. Why do you always have to assume that I can't protect myself? I've trained to be a kunoichi for my entire life, for what? To not be given a chance to prove myself? To get left behind on missions? To-"

At this point, Sasuke was staggering out of the hospital bed, grunting the entire way. By the time Sakura noticed what he was doing, mid-way through her angry-rant, he was behind her with an obviously annoyed expression.

"Listen to me, how about that?" Sasuke poked her in the forehead, stupefying Sakura into silence.

He continued, "How would you feel if one of the people you care most about was put into a life-threatening situation that you could control? If it was up to me, I'd be with you every single mission, Itachi be damned. You go on ANBU missions all the time, without Naruto or myself, do you know how that feels?

"No…"

"Don't feel so left behind, Sakura- _chan,"_ He sarcastically emphasized, "Ever so slowly you're leaving us for one of the best ANBU teams available. When was the last time you checked in with us after you came home from a mission?"

"Okay I get it." Sakura whispered angrily, "But you have to understand that no matter what, I'm going on missions. Maybe I wouldn't do ANBU so much if I had a team that took me on missions."

"Touché." Sasuke conceded. The two smiled at each other in silent understanding before Sasuke's eyes widened and he fell into his teammate.

"See? You're the idiot here." Sakura mocked as she all but carried Sasuke back to the hospital bed. It was moments like these that Sakura loved to take advantage of and tease her teammate. Her strength came in handy plenty of times, especially when her teammates need a whipping. Having an unable Sasuke, who can't even walk back to his bed, strewn across her arms bride-style, was so laughable that Sakura almost felt bad.

Sakura placed him back to lie down, no longer holding-back her giggles once he was safely down. He scowled, as per usual, but could not help but inwardly note how truly embarrassing it was getting carried like a baby by his small teammate. Sakura noted his blush, but decided not to continue teasing him, he seemed mortified enough.

"You're right." He replied after a few minutes, blush finally pushed down, "I don't appreciate what's right in front of me."

"Silly Sasuke, that will always be true." Sakura continued taunting him, giving him an once-over with chakra to make sure he did not hurt anything.

"Are you talking about that time you confessed to me or maybe something in the future?"

Sakura grabbed his pillow right from under Sasuke and smacked him with it, "I would do anything for you to forget that."

"I'll trade you. A massage and I won't bring it up at your's and Itachi's wedding."

"Go to hell." Sakura frowned, still beating him with the pillow.

"Just imagine my best-man speech now, 'The better Uchiha can be found by the fact that I had her first.'"

Sakura had to literally stop herself from punching Sasuke through the floor and down into the earth. "You do realize that I can literally punch you into your grave right now?

"I am telling the truth, though."

Sakura stopped her violent offense to place the pillow back down, sitting on hospital bed. "About what?"

"That I didn't appreciate you then."

"It's good you finally understand that."

"If I had known what I know now," Sasuke paused, "I would've held onto you."

Sakura blushed at his pure bluntness and candor, unsure of what to say in response. There were several gasps and her fist kept unclenching and clenching.

Sasuke, internally loving the confused and almost scared look on his teammate's face, continued pushing the conversation. (H secretly called it revenge for earlier). Getting close to her earlobe, he whispered wistfully, "Who says I still don't have a hold on you?

"I'll kill you."

"There it is." Sasuke sat back against the headboard, "Itachi all but pissed all over you." Sakura threw him a look, before remembering that whatever she said did not matter, Sasuke would always assume she had a thing for Itachi.

It was then that she remembered Sasuke's sudden anger from early and that specific physical response that had her completely dumbfounded. "So that poke on the forehead, was that a love declaration or something?"

"You know I love you," Sasuke replied seriously, "But you're an idiot."

"But I'm _your_ idiot, right?"

Sasuke smiled, actually _smiled,_ and not smirked. "We could've had it all."

Sakura gave him a light kiss on the top of his head before getting up, "I have to make dinner. So I'll visit you again tomorrow. I'll… let your family aware that you're awake."

"Sure, whatever." Sasuke replied, sitting back down and waving goodbye to his teammate, letting sleep take over his eyelids again.

 **Xxxx Xxxx Xxxx**

She visited Sasuke the night before, the afternoon sunshine flitting through her blinds. She didn't exactly tell the Uchiha's their son was awake, but instead pressured Ino to tell them for her. And now were the consequences of that behavior. There were only a handful of times that Sasuke surprised Sakura. This was one of those few moments, but this method was entirely a first on its own.

"Mikoto-san?"

"Good afternoon, sweetheart." Being a member of Team Seven had its perks, such as the amazing dinners that the Uchiha matriarch had to offer. After long training sessions at the Uchiha estate, it was silently expected that the kind mother would invite in her younger son's teammates. Bearing only sons, Mikoto quickly latched onto what she concerned her adoptive daughter.

"Not to be rude, but this visit was unexpected." Sakura had the door half open, attempting to conceal her dirty apartment. "Please, let me take a few minutes to tidy the place."

"Unnecessary. And please, drop the formalities. You don't need that nonsense with me." Mikoto offhandedly waved off Sakura's request as she strolled into the apartment, despite the medic's warnings.

"Why-"

"Let me get straight to the point. Why did you break up with my son?"

"Eh?!" Sakura was entirely shocked, hand still on the side of the door, forgetting completely to close it.

"As the mother to such a romantically incompetent son, I must help amend his inadvertent errors."

"Uchiha-san and I were never in a romantic relationship."

Mikoto interjected, "Yet! Sasuke explained the entire situation to me." Sakura was cursing out her meddling teammate for his damn stupid ways, but knew that no matter what she was still screwed. "And I think it's about time I entered this strained situation."

"Please, Mikoto-san. There's no need to-"

"Drop the formality, damnit and let me talk." Mikoto said firmly, turning towards Sakura with her full attention and hands on her hips. "Now don't let this little spat bar you away from all Uchiha's."

"I'm sorry if my decision seemed rash, but I-"

"You no longer want to heal me?" Mikoto interrupted, staring into her emerald eyes.

"Well, no."

"Alright," Mikoto had that scary smile that most Uchiha's replaced with a smirk – like she already knew how this conversation would go. "I'm sorry for assuming this, but after sharing such an extended time in Itachi-kun's presence, I figured it would be easy understand his social ability?"

"Yes, it was..." Sakura chose her words carefully, "But there is only so much one could deal with..."

"Are you saying my son is beyond trying for?"

"No." Sakura was quick to respond.

"But?" Mikoto still had that damned smile on her face, but now with a brow raised.

Sakura hesitated, finally closing the door behind her and offering a seat to the woman in front of her. "Maybe I need some time to gather my thoughts."

"Ah," Mikoto's smile transformed into a smirk, one that Sakura knew too damn well to instantly realize that the women in front is where Sasuke and Itachi inherited from, and not Fugaku. "So just a short break until you reconcile."

"I wouldn't say short." Sakura drew-out, looking away with a shy hand on her opposite elbow.

"I didn't take you for the sort of women who held onto petty grudges." Mikoto provoked.

"I am not." Sakura could see the direction of the conversation, "I'm sorry if it seems 'petty,' but both your son and husband threatened to remove me from my positions. I think they both made it quite clear where my standing is, so why should _I_ be the one to reconcile? Or at least, this is how I feel. And whether or not _you_ think this line of reasoning is okay, it's what I'm going."

Mikoto was digesting every word, nodding to certain parts of it and slowly straightening her smirk into a fine line. "I know how you must feel. Fugaku didn't fall in love with me overnight, after all."

"What do you mean?"

"I was a rising kunoichi, Jōnin, in fact. And when my parents paired me with Fugaku, it was understood that I would go off-duty. It irked him that I waited until midway through our engagement to finally stop."

"What did he do?"

"Just daily Fugaku things, ridicule my every thought and move. Even if I were to get just a scratch, he would admonish me for being reckless or unable to defend myself. It was horrible. Could you imagine your new fiancé hating every single move you did?"

"I mean it is Fugaku-san…" Sakura whispered, earning no response. The medic knew Mikoto heard it, since her lips curled into a smile almost imperceptibly.

"Eventually I confronted him and it was then that I finally realized what was going on. 'You would rather put your life on the line for strangers than care for your future husband?'" Mikoto reminisced, "It took this single question for me to realize why he was such an asshat."

Sakura gaped at her vernacular while releasing small chuckles, "He's mean because he cares?"

"And that is a summary of every Uchiha male, in one singular sentence." Mikoto looked back at Sakura, smiling away.

"Seriously?" Sakura was completely dumfounded."

"I just described to you Itachi and Sasuke's only model for romantic affairs. I thank Kami every day for our good looks, otherwise how on earth are those idiots supposed to get girls to like them?" Sakura laughed at that, finally beginning to comprehend what Mikoto was originally trying to convey.

Seeing the epiphany on Sakura's face, Mikoto took that as a signal that her job was done. Getting up from her spot on the couch and heading towards the door, the Uchiha matriarch turned around one last time to say:

"Please listen to me, Sakura-chan. Do not take his senselessness personally. Itachi has a good heart and when he sees someone he cares about get hurt, especially you, he does not know how to act. He flies into survival mode, as always, like everything is a mission. Just remember how he truly is inside." With a wave, the elegant mother was out the door and heading towards the marketplace.

"Hm." Sakura was unsure where to proceed. This was like a real life game of chess, expect all of her pieces were pawns and suddenly the queen was at her doorstep. It seemed as though every move she made, Sakura would get burned. Save their charge, get yelled at. Save Sasuke, get yelled at. Try to save her mental state, get a visit from Mikoto.

Sakura laughed, suddenly unable to remember the last time she actually felt well about a good deed. If she was going to keep this losing streak, there seemed to be only one destination left in mind.

 **Xxxx Xxxx Xxxx**

Standing at the threshold of the Uchiha manor did nothing to calm Sakura's nerves. There was an innumerable amount of clansmen that she passed along the way and they undoubtedly took note of her presence. Taking one deep breathe, Sakura summoned all her courage to knock on the door.

Two knocks.

Three knocks.

Four knocks.

…

Maybe he was ignoring her. About a good twenty minutes of being stared at later, there was not a single indicator that anyone could possibly be home. It seemed luck would never be on her side.

"Sakura-chan!" A familiar voice hollered, "There's been so much ruckus in the compound, I should've figured you were around."

"Shisui-san." She greeted.

"Here to give another Uchiha a vasectomy?" Shisui joked, "Of course if you're willing, I'd let you touch me."

Sakura took the bait and threw back, "You want a vasectomy that bad?"

Shisui took in a sharp breathe and waved his hands up in a blocking motion, "Just kidding, Sakura-chan. I could only assume your intentions, standing outside of the house of your sworn enemies."

"That's what I'm here to amend. I was verbally attacked right after Sasuke's surgery, exhausted and in no right state of mind."

"Don't tell me you're here to apologize." Shisui shook his head negatively, "You're totally in the right and I'm siding against my best friend here."

"I know. I'm not apologizing for what I decided. But I was rude when I rejected Fugaku-san's apology, it was not my intention to be disrespectful."

"Ah. Well, Fugaku-san does not come home until way later in the day. As our patriarch he heads the police force."

"Oh, right." She could almost slap herself in the face for forgetting.

"I know someone who is home, though."

"Who?" Sakura was genuinely confused.

"Itachi-kun." Shisui had a smirk on his face, which of course, meant that he was scheming something, "Come on!"

Before she could register exactly what was happening, Shisui took her arm in one hand and recited a jutsu in the other. They were standing exactly in the middle of Itachi's room and this made Sakura wonder just how many times Shisui has done this for the justsu to follow through so smoothly.

Itachi was previously laying on his bed, probably taking a leisurely nap, but now he was sat-up and armed with a kunai.

"Delivery for you." Shisui announced and Sakura was fighting against his grip on her elbow. With a smile, the goofy Uchiha was gone.

Itachi sat up until his feet hit the floor and patted his bed, signaling for her to sit down. Sitting a good foot away and not looking anywhere in his direction, Sakura followed his request and started.

"I came here for Fugaku-san, but I was made aware he is not home."

"Just my father?" He was staring intently at her, not at all masking his movements.

"Yup."

"Then allow me to start." Itachi shortened their gap to have their arms press together in contact. "I am sorry."

"You don't mean that." Sakura looked down to the floor, not entirely sure of what to say, "I was injured because I protected our charge, that was true. You shouldn't rescind what is fact.

"But it was wrong of me to threaten you." Itachi clarified.

"That is also true." Sakura smiled lightly, causing Itachi to crinkle his eyes in fondness. He took this the signal of forgiveness and placed a bold hand over her own.

The sudden wide-eyed look or her erratic heartbeat did not go unnoticed by the medic. It was undeniable, even though Sakura loved to spite Sasuke, that Itachi did have a certain hold on her heart. But not right now, her crush had to be minimized for the moment.

"You still hurt my feelings." Sakura commented, taking her hand away to cross it over her other.

Itachi felt a sharp stinging in his chest at the motion. She was shielding herself, _from him,_ because he fucked up and lost her trust.

"It was not my intention." Itachi looked away towards the door, "It was not easy watching someone I care about get hurt."

"So I've been told." Sakura smiled, hearing that explanation three times in two days. It seemed all the major men in her life were the same, Naruto, Sasuke, and even Itachi. They were all so coddling and over-protective in nature.

"You deserve better." Itachi nearly whispered.

Sakura's eyes widened, again, and it was her this time initiating the skinship. "So do you." Her hand was resting on the crook of his elbow, "I should've been more patient, but-"

"I could say the same about myself. You are still adjusting to ANBU missions, it must have been very tense."

The two were finally coming to an understanding, unlike their usual banter, angry or playful. Sakura smiled at his response, fully taking in his sleepy disposition. His hair, while still absolutely _beautiful_ , was slightly unkempt and Uchiha's usually did not accept less than perfection.

Lightly placing a hand to flatten his hair, Sakura giggled at his unusually imperfect self. The blush was slight, but present. It was then, with their faces so close, that he swooped in for the kill.

Their lips meet, in an entirely anticlimactic way. Not on the battlefield with one near their deathbed, like Itachi would so have believed in the past. But on his bed, in peaceful silence as their lips molded together as if created to perfectly fit.

 **Xxxx Xxxx Xxxx**

One more chapter cookies!

To answer any questions about this universe:

A non-massacre story, so yes Naruto's parents are alive. Sasuke's parents are alive. Itachi is alive and happy and a patriot in his village. Everyone is happy. ANnd no one is dead - esp not Neji.

i cri everi day.

Sent from my iPhone


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